


Clandestine

by ToastyDehmer



Category: Borderlands (Video Games), Tales from the Borderlands - Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Android Rhys, Gen, I'm sorry Rhys, Jack Has Feelings, Panic Attack
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-30
Updated: 2019-07-30
Packaged: 2020-07-27 02:57:23
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,057
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20038780
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ToastyDehmer/pseuds/ToastyDehmer
Summary: "H-H-Hand-andso-m-me J-J-Ja-ack-k-k si-si-sirrrrrrrrr…" On the last word, the last letter, the life slowly left Rhys' features, voice dialing down like a record slowing down until it came to a stop.(NOW WITH ART!!!)





	Clandestine

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ThePyromaniacEngineer](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThePyromaniacEngineer/gifts), [Spacefall](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Spacefall/gifts), [MrDork](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MrDork/gifts).

> I would like to thank [Pyro](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThePyromaniacEngineer/pseuds/ThePyromaniacEngineer), [Spacefall](https://sf-bl.tumblr.com/), and [Elijah](https://soft-paste.tumblr.com/) from the Rhack Hive Discord! These wonderful people provided the idea for this. I just put it into a oneshot.
> 
> Thank you for your amazing idea!!!!! And I hope you guys like it

Jack eyed the door impatiently, his foul mood souring the longer it took for this department representative to get his ass to Jack's office. In reality, it was a bit too early to expect them but Jack was bored. Not only that, he was annoyed and irritated. His teeth ground against each other as his irate thoughts bounced back and forth inside his skull. Someone had leaked valuable information. Well, not what Jack would call vital but his stockholders thought was something equal to the end of their world's. Which was stupid.

It was data mining. What fresh shit could be worth a damn there? R&D was where it was all at! All the good, fun, dangerous stuff that made Hyperion the most buck for their bang. Who cared about what their customers wanted more of? Jack's company was already on those points, strategically orchestrating in the background to reach those small goals. So why would that information be worth anything to anyone? Apparently one of Hyperion's competitors thought it valuable knowledge to hold above Hyperion’s head. Which was ridiculous.

The most they had accomplished was give Jack the start of what he was sure to be a raging migraine come the next half hour or so.

Jack absolutely _ hated _ dealing with whiny spoiled brats that consisted of his company's shareholders, silver spoons stuck up all their collective asses. Brats. Spoiled little brats with no brains or brawn to call their own. Ugh. At least they had money.

Jack was drawn from his thoughts as the door to his office suddenly opened to admit a- a tall glass of friggin water _ hello there cupcake _. The CEO leaned forward in his seat, eyes attentively peering at the other brunette. He pulled his feet off his desk and placed his forearms on his desk. Jack watched as the code monkey met Jack's intense gaze and faltered for a moment, eyes darting down to the floor and cheeks flushing a cute pink color.

_ 'Ah,' _ Jack thought with a grin, languidly leaning back in his chair. _ 'Kid's one of _ those _ types. This is gonna be a piece of cake.' _

Jack stayed silent as his employee trekked up the stairs once Jack gestured for him to come closer. Another falter, as if the kid was hesitant to believe he could take another step towards Jack.

"Well?" Jack rumbled. "Hurry up pumpkin, I don't have all day."

They jolted forward and up the rest of the steps.

"S-Sorry, sir."

Another stutterer. Fun. Let's see how flustered Jack could get them.

"Well aren't you adorable." Jack snickered when the other nearly tripped over their own feet. "So. Name?"

"Rhys, s-s-sir. Rhys Pav- Pavo- vo."

Don't tell him he was scaring the kid already? Jack hadn't even done anything yet! But the stuttering was worse and the kid wouldn't meet Jack's eyes again after that first time. In fact, he looked a little pale and twitchy. Shit, was Rhys going to pass out on Jack? Well...wouldn't be the first time he's had a fan faint in his presence. Certainly wouldn't be the last.

Jack rolled his eyes.

"Jeez kid, take some deep breaths why don't ya? Don't go passing out on me. You- ....hear...."

Jack trailed off as he looked closer as Rhys. Was that...there was smoke rising up from the kid, coming from his ears and- nose? What the hell?

"Rhys."

No response. Jack growled and stood up, striding around his desk. No one ignored Handsome Jack.

"Look at me when I'm talking to you, idiot!" He gripped Rhys' jacket with one fist and shook him, Rhys' head lolling back and Jack finally got a proper look at the kid's face and holy shit was it one hell of a freaky sight.

Rhys' entire body was shuddering in minute seizures. His blue eye ('ECHOeye?' Jack mentally questioned.) was flickering on and off, the light glitching as if it were shorting out. Rhys' head was twitching, each little facial muscle following with it and jarring with involuntary muscle spasms. And there were the faintest wisps of smoke coming from Rhys' eyes, nostrils, mouth, and ears. Even his port was spewing little trails of it.

"H-H-Hand-andso-m-me J-J-Ja-ack-k-k si-si-sirrrrrrrrr…" On the last word, the last letter, the life slowly left Rhys' features, voice dialing down like a record slowing down until it came to a stop. The first change was the face. Where there had been fear and terror was nothing. It was a vacant look with wide eyes and relaxed features. The second change was the body falling limp in Jack's hold. The third and final change was the sudden change of weight. The kid went from being maybe a hundred seventy-five pounds wet to what felt like literal _ tons_. Well, probably not that much but the (albeit large) exaggeration got the point across.

Jack quickly let go before he was taken down with the unexpected weight. Kid fell like a sack of potatoes and landed with a sound so loud, Jack wondered what could've broke in the process; Jack's floor or Rhys? Because as Jack stood there he realized either one was equally possible.

A gathering of sparks flew from Rhys' now-dull blue eye. Rhys' body twitched and then fell still once more. Jack eyed the form on the floor with something akin to trepidation....and hunger.

Rhys was an android, one flawlessly built to blend in with humans. The only company to have ever made a product like that was the long-dead Atlas Corporation. And Atlas tech like this was priceless, worth its weight in gold and diamonds and platinum and every other precious material known to man combined into one very large lump sum.

Jack wanted to own Rhys and keep him like a trophy.

Sure Jack owned Atlas and had gone so far as to grind them down into the dust but to have the pinnacle of android, cybernetic, and robotic technology as his lap dog would be like a slap to the face for any Atlas loyalist left.

But first things first, why did Atlas have an android hidden within Hyperion ranks.

The Hyperion CEO knelt down on one knee beside Rhys, carding reverent fingers through the auburn-touched chocolate locks. Soft. Light. The fingers trailer lower, knuckles caressing the jawline, head tilting in curiosity. Soft skin. Firm. Warm, like a living person would be. Jack ran his thumb over Rhys' cheekbone, swiping just below the lifeless blue eye. With his other hand Jack reached up towards the ECHO comm in his ear.

"I want two guards in my office stat," Jack quietly, evenly commanded, fury present but thinly veiled by his inner want. "And tell them to bring a Loaderbot with them. I've got something I need brought down to interrogation room three and there ain't no way in hell two men can carry this damn thing."

Jack waited there by Rhys, inspecting, eyeing, observing the android and cataloging every tiny detail to memory. Not two minutes later his office doors opened and two men and a Loaderbot walked in, Jack standing up and stepping back in the same breath. The two guards walked with their backs military straight and their helmets facing forwards only. Jack took a single glance at their ranks as the bot began to pick up Rhys. Without hesitating, Jack grabbed the higher ranked of the two and forcibly drew him close.

"I find a single hair on his pretty little head damaged and I will _ eviscerate _ everyone who touched him, am I understood, Sergeant?" Jack's word was law in Hyperion and Jack's dark voice promised retribution if this particular law wasn't followed

A stiff nod and, "Yes sir. I'll stand guard myself."

Jack eyed the guard. "Name?"

"Sergeant August Hempner, sir."

He dropped August with malevolent grin.

"Now that I've got a name to hold accountable, you both can go. Keep it in interrogation room three until I get there later. And put a signal jammer in the room."

"Sir, yes sir." They both gave Jack a salute.

"Now scram."

As the two guards and bot left his office, Jack stared at the limp head of the android, considering.

* * *

It was nearing seven PM before Jack was able to make his way down to Interrogations, a whole three and a half hours later. Three and a half hours filled with nothing but impatience from Jack. Each meeting he had after that encounter was rushed, every single participant outside of himself on edge and wary once they saw the flat look Jack wore. It was one that promised violence and bloodshed. Imagine their surprise when none of that happened.

If anything, a few of them noted that Jack seemed almost...distracted? But that couldn't be possible. Handsome Jack? Distracted? Sure he didn't care to pay attention but he always had an ear to every conversation he was (supposed to be) apart of. Handsome Jack always had something to say by the end, something that often proved that no matter how frivolous he seemed he nit-picky about any details. But the entire day he had nothing but general statements. Short and simple and to the point.

"Yeah, sure."  
"Mm-hm."  
"Nope."

Most meetings went on without a single bit of input from himself. It was...worrying to the inhabitants of Helios.

Handsome Jack was never this...docile. So by the time seven rolled around, the entirety of Helios was dreading what was to come next. People didn't dare to even look his way as he strode by everyone, their eyes to the ground in something bordering reverence. They kept their heads down and gave him and even wider berth than usual. His eyes spoke of rumbling thunder and no one wanted to be struck by the lightning that threatened to snap at whoever dared to get in his way. Even the guards he passed once he made it to the sector contained security kept their distance. All except one Sergeant August Hempner.

Jack stormed past the two guards posted outside the interrogation rooms and into the room. Hempner looked over from where he stood in front of the one-way glass and saluted immediately.

"Handsome Jack, sir."

Jack ignored him in favor of turning to the glass, looking at the seated and handcuffed android. He scoffed. Handcuffs? Really? Like those were going to hold a piece of brilliance like a top of the line Atlas 'droid. That thing could probably snap those cuffs with barely any effort. But he gave Hempner's mistake a pass; he couldn't have known this thing was an android and Jack was keen on revealing the information to anyone.

Rhys was going to be his and Jack wasn't going to have some nobody try to get in his way.

"It say anything yet?" Jack asked, not bothering to tear his eyes away from Rhys.

"He asked if anybody was there when he woke up half an hour ago but after that he went silent," Hempner answered. "Hasn't said a word since."

"You idiots put in a signal jammer like I told you to?"

Hempner didn't answer Jack as he instead rapped his armored knuckles on the glass.

Rhys turned his head and looked at the glass. His once blue eye was now a bright yellow, randomly flickering every few moments as he searched the one-way glass.

Yellow? Jack’s eyebrows furrowed. Why change colors now? Back in his office it had stayed a steady blue throughout the situation.

“Nobody messed with him?” Jack asked, eyes still on Rhys.

“If by ‘messed with’ you mean altered, then no sir.”

_ ‘Then what changed with its eye…’ _

Jack observed Rhys carefully, watching the android for gives and tells. A sign of anything inhuman.

The android was ...uncannily human in its actions, in the way it held itself. The lines of its shoulders were held tense and up, sharp. Its back was hunched forward, the android almost curling in on itself. Its chin was tucked in close to its clavicle, wary, unquestionably scared eyes flicking over the glass still as if it would give him some sort of answer. It was a breathtaking piece of machinery and coding if it was able to replicate this level of humanity.

There was nothing Jack could see that could pinpoint to it being an android and if he didn’t already know better, he would be fooled by the scene before him.

Flawless.

It made the genius in Jack salivate at the intellectual artistry that had to go in creating such a magnificent piece of work. He wanted a closer look. He wanted to open it up, take it apart piece by piece and see what made it tick, look through what had to be at least a petabyte of coding and programming and script, if not more. If Jack were to give his honest opinion, it’d probably be closer to half an exabyte and jesus fucking christ if that didn’t make any programmer worth their weight in salt harder than a friggin diamond then Jack really didn’t know how much worth they had in the first place because that right there was fucking hot.

Jack would love to meet the team who made this gorgeous thing a reality.

But first…

“I want a recording of this room while I’m in there.” Jack turned and walked to the door, a ‘yes sir’ and no doubt a salute following him out.

When the door to the interrogation room opened, Jack was met with the glitching gaze of one android. He watched what couldn’t be anything else but intrinsic fear entering those artificial eyes, the android’s skin paling. But intrinsic couldn’t be right because that would insinuate the android did was natural when it was anything but.

The links of the cuffs holding Rhys’ hands began to lightly jingle, Jack finding the android’s hands minutely shaking on tightly holding the other at the wrist. Rhys’ breathing obviously quickened, little short breaths going in and out. There was very clear horror displayed over its face. Jack stoically watched with narrowed eyes as he languidly took a seat on the other side of the metal table, swinging the chair around to lay his forearms over the top of the back.

“Rhys Indus Pavo,” Jack began to drawl, thinking over the multitude of information Hyperion had on the android employee. Jack eyed the android cautiously, warily. The weight of his holstered gun against his right thigh was a reassurance, his little hidden toy even more so. After all, no one knew what all this android was capable of.

The CEO looked over at the one-way glass, this side of the surface and smoky grey-black that muddled any reflection past recognition, only vague blobs of desaturated colors. Jack couldn’t even find his different colored eyes in the glass. Hell, he could barely tell what color his jacket was. His sweater was little more than a soft glow on the glass from this far away.

Jack looked Rhys right in the eye and unequivocally asked, “What are you.”

“I-” Whatever it had been expecting, it wasn’t that. The android hesitated, looking away, unsure. Jack’s eyes narrowed. This thing wasn’t human so why was it still copying something so...mundane. It had to of known it was found out. “I’m Rhys, a Hyperion employee, employee number 15B6-02003, I work in-”

“Yeah yeah yeah,” Jack hurriedly cut Rhys off with a wave of his hand, scrunching his nose. Ugh. Annoying. “I already know all that, cupcake. I’m not asking who you are.” He leaned forward, eyes glinting with something sharp. “I’m asking _ what _ you are.”

“Wh-What do you mean?” The android looked even more confused than before.

Jack sighed and shook his head. Why was it still trying to fool him?

“It’s obvious you’re an android of some kind, kiddo. Atlas if the quality of work is anything to go by.”

Rhys stilled in his chair, owl eyes blankly blinking.

“What?”

“Don’t try and play me for a fool, Rhysie. I’m Handsome goddamned Jack. You think I wouldn’t keep my office protected from shit like that? Granted I didn’t think anyone would be stupid enough to send an adnroid _ spy _ up to my office but I guess I can’t account for every idiot in the universe.” Jack shrugged.

“What- no. I’m not- What are you talking about? I’m human.”

“You ‘passed out’ in my office only after a couple minutes of being in there which isn’t really much but it’s everything else about it.” Jack began to tick them off on his fingers. “One, your voice started glitching. Two, your body was moving like you were having a spaz attack. Three, when you passed out, you weighed more than any unconscious human ever would. And four, ECHOeyes don’t glitch like that. And definitely don’t have more than one color.”

Here the android’s brows came together in a frown. “What are you talking about? My ECHOeye is blue.”

Jack snorted.

“How about you take a look at your reflection on the table idiot and try telling me you’ve got an ‘ECHOeye’ again.”

Rhys looked at Jack uncertainly before eventually looking down. Jack noticed the moment Rhys saw the yellow glow flickering back at him from the shiny metal table.

“That’s- That’s not supposed to happen,” Rhys quietly murmured.

“No shit Sherlock,” Jack responded with a roll of his eyes. But Rhys continued on.

“M-My eye is- is blue. It’s not yellow. I don’t have a yellow eye. I-I’m n-n-not an and-android-d."

Jack sat up, back straight, warily eyeing the android as it’s voice turned more and more frantic. Its breathing was beginning to speed up, panicky. Fast. Too fast for a normal rate. He surreptitiously leaned back when brown and solid bright _ red _ snapped up and latched onto him, wide and _ oh so scared _ and _ lost. _ Utterly lost.

“I-I’m human-n. You’re- You’re wrong. I-I-I’m not-t-t an an-an-an- android. I’m not!” It stood up, the chair it had been sitting in scooting back. There were tears gathering in the corners of its eyes, what the actual fuck, androids didn’t cry, _ couldn’t _ cry. “I’m hu-hum-human! You’re wrong-ng! You’re wro-ong!! YOU’RE” the red was furiously blinking in and out and it closed its eyes tightly, screaming, fists raised, metal links connecting the cuffs to the table _ snapping_, voice glitching into something deeper, broken, _ scarier _ “WRONG!!!!!”

Those fists slammed against the metal table with a sound so loud it reverberated in the room and shook the glass, the vibrations going through the floor and up Jack’s legs, his chair shuddering for that single millisecond. The room stilled. It was deathly silent. Rhys was staring down at the destroyed table.

Directly where his fists had landed on the table, the metal had started ripping apart. Jack never felt more aware of his fragile mortal human body than he had in that moment, locked in with what was probably the strongest android he had ever laid eyes on or heard of.

And not even a single scratch on those mismatched hands.

A pale, pale, shattered face looked out and saw nothing. That red eye was blinking furiously, rapidly. A dire warning. Tears streamed down skin that was perfectly imperfect, shining clear and glistening under the sickly bright fluorescent lights. Rhys’ body was minutely jerking again like it had hours earlier in Jack’s office, short little jumps.

Those hands slowly opened and retracted from the table, Rhys’ breaths shuddering in his chest. He held his hands close to his chest and stared down at what he had caused.

Jack’s back was one straight tense line and he kept one hand on the taser he had hidden inside his jacket. He watched the android take a step back, breathing picking up again.

“N-N-No…” Another step back. They tripped over their chair and fell onto the floor, the last chain holding the cuffs together breaking with a high-pitched sound as Rhys went to catch himself on the floor. He landed on his ass and quickly scrambled back until his back hit the metal door with a low thud. Rhys shook his head and drew his knees up to his chest, hands coming up and covering his ears.

All the while his eye flickered a bright candy red.

Jack stood up and the android flinched back, curling in on himself even tighter.

“I’m human,” the android softly chanted to itself, starting to rock back and forth. Slowly Jack began to creep forward.

The red was a warning of- of something. The android wouldn’t self-destruct, right? It wouldn’t start killing itself...right? Jack’s heard of it before, where the early models would overstress their processors and begin to tear at themselves, a bug that persistently hung around. Back when they were commonly produced, they had some sort of indicator on them. From what Jack remembered, red was bad. Very bad.

Jack needed the android in one whole piece, chassis, coding, and all.

He carefully moved around the table and came closer, lowering himself until he was down on one knee only a couple feet from Rhys. Jack reached out, moving slowly, slowly. His hand was a few inches from touching Rhys’ knee when Jack’s holster loudly shifted and Rhys’ head snapped up to stare directly into Jack’s eyes and he paused his advance.

Hollow. Broken. Lost. Scared. Alone alone alone. _ Please help me. _

Jack looked into those eyes for the half second of silence and for the first time in his life he saw in someone else...himself. He saw himself staring at his grandmother, scared and afraid and lost and not knowing what he did to deserve this or how to fix it or what she wanted from him or wanted to hear or-

“DON’T!” Rhys’ voice glitched again and a sob hiccuped in the back of the android throat. Tears came on thicker, the stream steady. He said nothing more. The silence reigned heavy and tense for long moments.

Jack looked back in unsure silence. What should he do? How does one ...console(?) an android? Could they even be consoled? Was there something broken? He could fix that with a little fiddling around to understand what he was working with. But where to go from there? There was one thing blaring in his head for sure.

He couldn’t let Rhys go back to wherever.

For whatever reason, Jack felt compelled to...be there? To keep the android by his side? <strike> To help?</strike> Something. To do something. Jack looked away for a moment, eyes full of emotion and apprehension. He nervously smacked his lips, swallowed anxiously. This wasn’t really his area of expertise at all.

“Look, kid.” Jack looked back up. Rhys, an android, was hyperventilating. His eye was flickering even faster now. Jack had to be quick. “You’re gonna figure it out. And until you do, you’re staying with me, got it?”

That didn’t seem to help. If anything it only made the android even more fearful.

Shit. He wasn’t any good at this.

“I’m not gonna hurt you. If...If that helps at all.”

“I-I-I just want to- to b-b-be noooor-m-m-maalll.” And just like before when his voice went like that, life slowly bled from the android’s eyes, facial features relaxing until it was a smooth blankness bereft of any human emotion. Rhys’ body fell still, arms sliding until they rest lax at his sides. His head slid to the side until it fell still, cheek almost touching his shoulder.

Rhys’ left eye was dark and grey.

“Shit.” Jack sighed and stood up, stretching with a hand on the bad of his neck before he stared down at the android feeling conflicted.

Empathy. That’s what he was feeling.

That was...new. And he still felt it even though Rhys was...hibernating? In sleep mode? Damnit, what a clusterfuck.

“Hempner, stop the recording,” Jack called, knowing the Sergeant could hear him through the speakers. “Have it sent to my ECHO and erase it from the logs. Then grab a Loaderbot. I need this thing brought up to my home.”

Softly enough so the microphones in the room couldn’t pick up, Jack grumbled to himself, “What the hell are you getting yourself into this time, Jack?”

No one answered and even after the Loaderbot had come and picked up Rhys some ten minutes later, Jack still didn’t have an answer for himself.

**Author's Note:**

> HEY. HEY YOU. LISTEN.
> 
> The lovely piece of art in this oneshot came from the lovely [Saff](https://twitter.com/saffytaffy6)! Go check them out! They have more BL art!! For the sake of ease in the future, [HERE](https://twitter.com/saffytaffy6/status/1159002605638393856) is the link to the post where you can find this image. GO GIVE THEM PLENTY OF LOVE!!!!
> 
> For those of you who follow _Hello, Welcome Home_ and are waiting for an update, you may be waiting a bit longer. I'm part of a couple projects that I'm working on rn. Not only that but I've recently picked up a second job! Which, believe me, is good and necessary. I'm glad I got it. BUT! I have not given up on my baby fic.


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